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Now that we've finished our countdown of the top 25 Mets prospects for 2016 it's time to show you how the sausage gets made. But first, here are all 25 prospects with links to their write-ups.
- 1. Steven Matz, LHP
- 2. Amed Rosario, SS
- 3. Gavin Cecchini, SS
- 4. Brandon Nimmo, OF
- 5. Dominic Smith, 1B
- 6. Luis Carpio, OF
- 7. Wuilmer Becerra, OF
- 8. Desmond Lindsay, OF
- 9. Robert Gsellman, RHP
- 10. Chris Flexen, RHP
- 11. Milton Ramos, SS
- 12. Matt Reynolds, SS
- 13. Jeff McNeil, 3B, 2B
- 14. Gabriel Ynoa, RHP
- 15. Marcos Molina, RHP
- 16. Luis Guillorme, SS
- 17. Ali Sanchez, C
- 18. Eudor Garcia, 3B
- 19. Max Wotell, LHP
- 20. Josh Smoker, LHP
- 21. Jhoan Urena, 3B
- 22. Akeel Morris, RHP
- 23. Harol Gonzalez, RHP
- 24. Raphael Ramirez, OF
- 25. Thomas Szapucki, LHP
| Rank | Greg | Lukas | Steve | Jeff |
| 1 | Steven Matz | Steven Matz | Steven Matz | Steven Matz |
| 2 | Gavin Cecchini | Amed Rosario | Gavin Cecchini | Amed Rosario |
| 3 | Amed Rosario | Gavin Cecchini | Brandon Nimmo | Luis Carpio |
| 4 | Brandon Nimmo | Brandon Nimmo | Amed Rosario | Brandon Nimmo |
| 5 | Luis Carpio | Dominic Smith | Dominic Smith | Desmond Lindsay |
| 6 | Dominic Smith | Wuilmer Becerra | Wuilmer Becerra | Dominic Smith |
| 7 | Desmond Lindsay | Luis Carpio | Robert Gsellman | Gavin Cecchini |
| 8 | Wuilmer Becerra | Desmond Lindsay | Luis Carpio | Wuilmer Becerra |
| 9 | Robert Gsellman | Marcos Molina | Desmond Lindsay | Robert Gsellman |
| 10 | Matt Reynolds | Jeff McNeil | Eudor Garcia | Ali Sanchez |
| 11 | Gabriel Ynoa | Chris Flexen | Gabriel Ynoa | Matt Reynolds |
| 12 | Chris Flexen | Milton Ramos | Chris Flexen | Milton Ramos |
| 13 | Milton Ramos | Luis Guillorme | Jeff McNeil | Gabriel Ynoa |
| 14 | Jeff McNeil | Josh Smoker | Max Wotell | Chris Flexen |
| 15 | Jhoan Urena | Akeel Morris | Luis Guillorme | Marcos Molina |
| 16 | Marcos Molina | Dario Alvarez | Matt Reynolds | Max Wotell |
| 17 | Luis Guillorme | Robert Gsellman | Milton Ramos | Josh Smoker |
| 18 | Josh Smoker | Matt Reynolds | Ali Sanchez | Jeff McNeil |
| 19 | Ali Sanchez | Ali Sanchez | Akeel Morris | Raphael Ramirez |
| 20 | Eudor Garcia | Eudor Garcia | Thomas Szapucki | Luis Guillorme |
| 21 | Max Wotell | Dash Winningham | David Thompson | Ricardo Cespedes |
| 22 | Raphael Ramirez | Jhoan Urena | Harol Gonzalez | Harol Gonzalez |
| 23 | Harol Gonzalez | Thomas Szapucki | Marcos Molina | Jhoan Urena |
| 24 | Patrick Mazeika | Gabriel Ynoa | Sixto Torres | Eudor Garcia |
| 25 | John Mora | Kevin Kaczmarski | Jose Medina | Seth Lugo |
As I said at the start, we all have our own methodologies when it comes to these rankings, and I encourage you to listen to our prospect podcast to get some additional color on our personal preferences.
Before we part, I want to talk about some of the prospects who didn't make the list but who could factor into the 2017 list. The Mets spent seven figures each on a pair of 16-year-old shortstops in the international free agent market: Andres Gimenez and Gregory Guerrero. It will be interesting to see if either of them come stateside this year.
Dash Winningham is a 20-year-old left-handed first baseman with big pop and may start the year in Low-A Columbia. Michael Gibbons was signed last year as an undrafted free agent and pitched well across four levels in 2015. He could grab one of the starter spots in either St. Lucie or Binghamton. Tyler Badamo is a right-handed starter who can run it up to the low-90s and should be ticketed for Columbia.
Right-hander Nabil Crismatt posted excellent strikeout and walk numbers last year for Kingsport. Seth Lugo might provide the Mets some rotation depth or pitch out of the pen this year. Outfielder Travis Taijeron won't factor into the 2017 list, but the 27-year-old right-handed slugger has hit for power at every stop in the minors.
So there you have it. The system is down from where it has been in previous years but for all the right reasons. The Mets have been able to translate those strong systems into success at the major league level, which is what this is all about. The current system has a mix of players who will be able to help the major league club in 2016, some high upside prospects who are further away, and some prospects who can position themselves as trade chips for the coming season.